Basil Poached Oranges And Grapefruit Recipes

ORANGE AND BASIL BISCOTTI

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a large rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.
• Combine the sugar and butter in the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with a paddle. Cream the mixture until pale and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, making sure to mix well before each addition. Add the orange zest and basil and blend on low speed, about 30 seconds.
• Combine the flour, baking powder and salt in a separate bowl. Add the flour mixture to the standing mixer and beat until combined. Fold in the almonds.
• Transfer the dough to a lightly floured surface. Divide the dough in half. Using floured hands, shape the dough into logs. Brush off the excess flour. Place the logs on the baking sheet, spaced 5 inches apart.
• Flatten each log into a 2-inch-wide strip. Bake the logs, rotating the baking sheet halfway through, until browned and set, about 30 minutes. Transfer the logs to a cooling rack and cool, about 15 minutes.
• Reduce the oven to 300 degrees F.
• Transfer the logs to a work surface. Cut each log diagonally into 1/3-inch-thick slices using a serrated knife. Arrange the slices, cut-side down, on the baking sheet. Bake the slices, rotating the baking sheet halfway through, until crisp, about 20 minutes. Transfer the slices to the cooling racks and let cool.
• The biscotti can be made 3 days ahead and stored in an airtight container at room temperature.

ORANGE-GRAPEFRUIT MARMALADE WITH GINGER

Steps:

• Cut fruit in half, squeeze out juice and pulp, discard seeds. The volume of this should be approximately 4 cups. Remove zest, this should yield approximately 1/2 cup. Transfer juice, pulp and zest to a large glass bowl. Cover and refrigerate for 24 hours. This helps the peel to soften.
• After soaking, put the citrus in a large stockpot. Add 6 cups of water, simmer for 1 1/2 hours. A sample of the peel should feel quite tender if rubbed between fingers. Add sugar and ginger. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon. Boil hard for 20 minutes until sugar is dissolved and mixture is thickened. If the mixture foams up, add a pat of butter and the froth will subside.
• Test for jell-point: drop a small amount of hot marmalade on a chilled plate. Return to the freezer for 1 minute. If surface forms a skin, it has reached jelling point, if still syrupy, continue cooking and test again in 5 minutes.
• Remove from heat, stir in pectin. Cool for 15 minutes, spoon into half-pint sterilized jars leaving 1/4-inch headspace and seal.
• ** Recipe Note: Traditionally the citrus seeds and pith are enclosed in a nylon bag and boiled along with the juice/pulp. This releases the natural pectin that is stored in that part of the orange. For time and ease, we eliminated that step and used store-bought fruit pectin. It worked very well.
• ***To sterilize the canning jars, wash the containers in hot, soapy water and rinse. Boil them in a large pot for 10 minutes. Keep the jars in hot water until ready to use to prevent the jars from cracking. Dry with paper towels before filling with marmalade. Once filled, put on lids and collar. Boil again for 10 minutes to seal the jars.

PERFECT POACHED FRUIT

Steps:

• Place the vin santo, sugar, cinnamon, cloves, vanilla bean, and zests in a large, shallow saucepan with 2 cups of water. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to low and simmer for 10 minutes.
• Peel the pears, leaving the stems intact, and scoop out the seeds from the bottom with an apple corer or melon baller. Lay half the pears on their sides in the poaching liquid and simmer for 20 minutes, carefully turning the pears once with a spoon. Remove with a slotted spoon. Poach the remaining pears in the same liquid. Snip off the hard stems from the figs with scissors. Add the figs, apricots, prunes, and the first batch of poached pears and simmer 5 to 10 more minutes, until the pears and the dried fruit are all tender.
• Chill the pears, dried fruit, zests, and poaching liquid. Remove the cinnamon, cloves, and vanilla bean before serving if you like.

BASIL PALOMA

Steps:

• Put 2 basil leaves and 1 grapefruit segment in a highball glass and muddle gently. Add 2 ounces silver tequila, juice of 1/2 lime, and 1/2 ounce simple syrup. Stir gently. Add ice, 3 ounces grapefruit juice and soda to top. Stir gently again. Garnish with a lime wedge.

ORANGE AND GRAPEFRUIT SALAD WITH CORIANDER AND BLACK OLIVES

Steps:

• Peel and segment the citrus. Using a paring knife, slice a thin slice off the top and the bottom of the fruit, so that it has a stable base. Then, start to slice off the peel in strips, moving your knife from top to bottom, following the natural curve of the fruit. Repeat, moving around the perimeter of the fruit, until there's no more peel and the flesh is visable.
• To remove the segments, hold the fruit in the palm of your hand and then slice between the membranes toward the center of the fruit to release a pretty little segment of citrus. Repeat for each fruit.
• Arrange the orange and grapefruit segments in a shallow dish. Sprinkle the olives over the fruit. Drizzle the oil over the citrus segments and sprinkle with the coriander, salt and pepper. Serve.

GRILLED MARINATED SHRIMP WITH ROASTED GRAPEFRUIT

Steps:

• Marinate the shrimp with the olive oil, garlic, thyme, oregano, for at least an hour up to 24. Peel the grapefruit and cut into segments, lay out on a small sheet pan and top lightly with super fine sugar. Place grapefruit under broiler and cook until golden. In a saucepan, over medium high heat, reduce the grapefruit juice by 3/4's, add the heavy cream and reduce until thick. Remove from the heat and slowly add the butter, constantly whisking and finish with salt and pepper to taste. Grill the shrimp on an open flame, or in a grill pan until done. Plate shrimp (3 per person); alternate with grapefruit segments on the plate. Place masche or watercress in the center of the plate. Drizzle the grapefruit sauce over and serve.